Fun and Healthy Tiffin ideas – BonHappetee

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Tiffin is a main concern for a mother of school going kids, and in my case it was double as my kids school timings are from 0830 to 1530 so all in all they had two breaks, breakfast time and lunch time. I had to be very very careful and creative at the same time to give them a meal that is not only healthy and nutritious but also ensured empty lunch boxes and filled tummys.
I believe when it comes to kids they need complete nutrition and we can’t skip anything be it proteins, vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrates etc. So i try to give them all energy foods packed with love.
Presenting here small tiffin break ideas, full meals for long lunch break and sweet dish/ dessert to give that extra energy in school. Trying to pack health, nutrition, and mother’s warmth in tiffin boxes.

1. Veggie/ beetroot idli

• Add finely chopped veggies of your choice and salt to taste to idli batter or you can give them a little boil so kids wont be able to pick veggies and remove them. It gives good color to normal plain idli and can be had with sauce or chutney anything.

• Idli batter one can make of rice and urad dal, or you can make instant rava idlis using eno or these days batter is readily available in markets too.
• It is surely a hit in tiffins with roit of colors and health packed with a punch.

           
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2. Appe

Best way to feed your kids with proteins with loads of pulses in it.
Ingredients

• 1 glass rice
• 1/2 glass chana daal
• 3/4 glass urad dhuli daal
• 3/4 glass green moong daal
• 2 tbsp arhar/ tuar daal
• curry leaves – 20 leaves approx
• Green chillies – 2-4 pieces
• Garlic – 10 cloves
• ginger – approx 1 inch
• jeera 2 tsp
• pinch of asafetida
• Salt to taste
  

  

Method
Soak all above daals for 4-5 hours and then grind to paste, a rough paste will also do as they are properly soaked so no worries.)

• Mix all spices and shallow fry in appe patram available online as well as offline)
• Its a nutritious snack can be even given to kids in tiffin box or enjoyed on Sunday brunch.
• Tastes good with Pudina OR coriander chutney.

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3. Bread Pizza

Whole wheat bread topped with loads of vegetables and shallow fry. It’s a halka fulka snack and yum for tiffin box option.
Ingredients

• Whole wheat bread
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1 tomato finely chopped
• 1 capsicum finely chopped
• Rava/ suji/ semolina 1 cupful
• 4-5 spoons fresh cream/ malai
• Red chilly powder ½ tsp
• Jeera 1/2 tsp
• amchur pdr ½ tsp
• Salt to taste
• Mashed potato or grated panner is optional to taste, One can use cheese too

Method
Mix all things in a bowl to a smooth paste which can be easily spread on each slice.


Then shallow fry on tava or pan upside down first. You can even bake it in microwave/ OTG on baking dish for say approx. 7-8 minutes. Pack in tiffins with a pouch of sauce.
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4. Alu paratha/ Paneer paratha

Aloo paratha is most popular paratha recipe. it’s a spicy potato mixture with daily use spices are used for stuffing in dough. Its very easy and quick to make. Its a good tiffin box snack, breakfast or any time meal.
For stuffing:

• Potatoes – 500 grams (5 -6) boiled and mashed
• chilly pdr 1tsp
• zeera pdr 1tsp
• pinch of turmeric pdr
• amchur pdr 1tsp
• anardana powder 1 tsp
• coriander fresh and salt to taste.
• Add finely grounded paste of 2 Green chilies,  ½ inch Ginger(it’s optional)

For Outer layer:
Whole wheat flour – 2 cups
Oil – 2 tablespoons
salt – to taste
Water –  ¾ cup or as required.
For parathas the dough should be soft so knead it nicely and keep aside.
For making Paratha

• take a small amount of dough ball, flatten and roll using the rolling pin using bit of flour for dusting, as we make rotis.
• Place potato stuffing inside the flattened & rolled dough and press the filling insides and pull the dough outwards, now join and bring together the empty dough pleats properly as otherwise there will be gaps while rolling and the filling comes out.
• Press the edges with your fingertips properly ensuring there is no gap. Roll this ball in some flour and roll into a round flat bread/ paratha of the same size as of roti/ paratha.
• Now place this flattened and rolled paratha on the hot tava, ensure tava is hot and not cold or just warm. Parathas need to be cooked on medium – high flame as low flame won’t cook them properly and they will turn hard.
• Once you are sure it’s done from one side, flip the paratha so it gets cooked/ roasted from both sides, it’s time to roast it by brushing with ghee/ oil/ butter. Ensure applying ghee only when u start seeing brown spots. if ghee is applied on raw paratha it will harden.
• Till both the sides are well cooked/ roasted properly we have to roast, it takes approx 1-2 minutes for a partaha, in between keep on pressing paratha with a spatula or flat ladle.
• Serve hot with butter or mango pickle or lemon pickle or some fresh curd.
• It’s a full meal and a good option for tiffins/ lunch boxes.

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5. Boiled Paavbhaji

Yes it’s a healthy oil free paavbhaji where taste is intact but oil is less. As it’s boiled and not fried. This is the best way to feed kids veggies.
Ingredients

• 2 Onions long sliced
• 3 Tomatoes finely chopped
• 10-15 Beans finely chopped
• 6-8 Cauliflower florets 15-20
• 2-3 Potatoes peeled and cut in large pieces
• 1 Cupful Peas
• Salt to taste
• Paavbhaji masala
• One can add any vegetable of their choice. Since all gets boiled you don’t have to worry.

Method

• Sauté onion in little oil only if you like fried flavor of onions else they can be also boiled along with other veggies.
• Instead of frying all veggies simply boil them, or pressure cook them giving 3-4 whistles.
• Later add salt and paav bhaji masala or you can add simply coriander powder a little chilly powder and little amchur powder.
• Once boiled we need to mash it properly to give even taste and let all water dry up.
• Top with butter and coriander leaves.

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6. Multigrain Ladoo

Laddoo is a sweet, round, ball shaped pop up sweet dish. This Atta ladoo which I call nutritious multi grain laddoo is favorite in my house and loved by kids!

Ingredients:

• 3 cup wheat flour which is used for making rotis.
• 2 cup multigrain atta (you can make it purely with only mutligrain atta depending upon your taste)
• 1/2 kg or more desi ghee
• 1/2 cup crushed almonds/ badam
• 1/2 cup crushed cashews/ kaju
• 1/2 cup crushed walnuts/ akhrot
• 1/2 cup crushed dry dates, sometimes the kharik powder is also available so one can use that too.
• 1 tsp cardamom/ elaichi powder
• 1 tsp nutmeg/ jaifal powder
• I also add badam pak from patanjali for add on taste
• 3-4 cups powdered sugar approx the same qty as of atta

This makes approx 50 laddoos so one can reduce or increase as per requirement.
Method

• Roast atta with approx half of the ghee(1-1.5 cups) on medium heat about 15 minute or else you can microwave it on 60% power for 10 minutes but with breaks of 5 min then remove and mix, then again 2-3 minutes again remove and mix. It will turn light brown color.
• Keep it aside and let the atta cool and in the mean time in small wok fry crushed almonds, cashews, walnuts all separately in shifts as all have different heating temperatures.
• Now once dry-fruits are cooled grind them in mixer pot.

NOTE – I grind all dry-fruits as few people or kids don’t like the big pieces coming in mouth and they end up throwing but if you like pieces then let them be coarsely grounded only and no grinding.

• Now Add atta mixture and grounded sugar and dry-fruits and remaining ghee along with cardamom, nutmeg, date powder…..on a big clean sheet or big plate or big bowl where in you can mix all the things properly.
• One can also move the all added ingredients just once in mixer pot as this way everything gets mixed up well and becomes uniform.

• Take a little amount say approx a palmful and press the mixture in order to make round shaped balls. I ensure to put 1-2 kishmish in between each ladoo and shape them in a ball, this ensures there is a kishmish in each laddoo.
• Let ladoos cool to room temperature before transferring and storing in a airtight container. The ladoos stay fresh and fine for 2 to 3 weeks without any damage.

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7. Chocolate Muffins’

Chocolate and that too in muffins is like icing on the cake, strawberry on top of ice-cream. Yes kids simply love chocolates, cakes, cookies, muffins.
Ingredients

• • 1 cup Wheat Flour
  • 2 table spoon Cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ tsp Baking powder
  • ½ tsp Baking soda
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ cup Butter or ⅓ cup vegetable oil
  • ½ cup (or as needed) Milk
  • 2 tea spoon Vanilla extract
  • 3 Eggs

• ¾ cup + ¼ cup dark semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat oven at 180 c at convection mode. Grease small muffin moulds (aluminium, glass or oven safe) with butter or you can also take a standard-size muffin pan.
2. Mix all dry items i.e. wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda together in a bowl.
In another bowl, mix the oil, milk, and vanilla extract, Add Cream butter and sugar together. Add egg and mix it well.
4. Add the dry flour mixture to the wet ingredient bowl and combine with a spatula or use whisker as it gives good lump free batter. whisk until everything is incorporated and no dry flour can be seen. Do not beat or over-mix as it dries up the cake/ muffin.
5. If required, add milk and mix well put this mixture in muffin molds. I prefer putting a small piece of chocolate in between the muffin to enhance taste.
6 Now place moulds into preheated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool “Chocolate Muffins” and serve topped with silver balls etc.

Eat healthy, stay fit and happy!
I am participating in the ‘Get Fit, Stay Fit’ blog party with Bon Happetee!
I thank Neha Jain for introducing me on her blog for baby n mommy which showcases everyday learning and growing up with her kiddo, she loves baking, &art and craft. and take the opportunity to introduce Prerna Wahi who is a avid reader & writes for many online portals.  Do check out their wonderful posts.

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